St. Pete Athletic – Paddle & Social has been named the No. 1 pickleball club in the U.S. in CourtSource’s 2026 Top 100 ranking, putting the St. Petersburg, Florida, venue at the forefront of a broader shift toward hospitality-driven racquet sports clubs. The ranking was developed using CourtSource’s database of more than 18,300 U.S. venues, combining facility data with an editorial review of factors including coaching, leagues, amenities, food and beverage, social spaces and the overall player experience. CourtSource said sponsorship did not factor into the results.
The approximately 50,000-square-foot St. Pete Athletic facility offers 14 indoor pickleball courts and two padel courts alongside dining and bar service, fitness and recovery amenities, coworking areas and social spaces. Located in St. Petersburg’s Warehouse Arts District, the club was designed around a model that extends the customer experience beyond court time, allowing members and visitors to play, work, dine and socialize under one roof.
That model is increasingly visible across the private-club segment of pickleball. CourtSource’s Top 10 includes facilities ranging from The Fort’s 43-court tournament campus in Fort Lauderdale to clubs integrating restaurants, bars, recovery services and entertainment. Florida had five clubs in the Top 10 and 11 among the Top 100, while Texas placed 10 clubs on the full list.
The ranking arrives amid continued growth in the sport’s customer base. Citing Sports & Fitness Industry Association data, CourtSource said 24.3 million Americans played pickleball in 2025, more than five times the participation reported in 2020. For operators, the rankings underscore an evolving business proposition: increasingly, the competitive advantage is not simply how many courts a facility can offer, but how effectively it can turn those courts into a broader social, hospitality and lifestyle destination.
